With co-financing from the Rural Development Program, a garment manufacture was launched in Khulo municipality. Company Beck invested 34,600 GEL in setting up a garment manufacture, including 27,680 GEL co-financed by the Rural Development Programme. The garment manufacture employs 17 local residents.

Giorgi Jibladze, Deputy Director of Rural Development Agency, Ketevan Khutsishvili, Head of Rural Development, Civil Security and Crisis Management Program of EU Delegation to Georgia, Anna Chernyshova, United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Resident Representative in Georgia visited Khulo municipality.

Another new enterprise was financed under the Rural Development Program; the aim of this program is to support the development of non-agricultural activities in rural areas. It should be noted that co-financing of more than 30 financed projects amounts to more than GEL 3.7 million and the total value of investments exceeds GEL 5.5 million, said Giorgi Jibladze, Deputy Director of Rural Development Agency.

The Rural Development Program is being implemented in the municipalities of Keda, Khulo, Borjomi, Akhalkalaki, Tetritskaro, Kazbegi, Lagodekhi and Dedoplistskaro.

The Government of Georgia has worked out an alternative way of developing the countryside, which is based on diversifying the rural economy and a sustainable business model. Today, as the economy of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara is recovering from the crisis caused by the pandemic, this unique region has a good opportunity to implement this new approach," said Anna Chernyshova, UNDP Resident Representative.

The Rural Development Program is implemented by the Rural Development Agency (RDA) with the support of the European Union (EU) and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) under the European Neighborhood Program for Agriculture and Rural Development (ENPARD).

Giorgi Nanobashvili, Head of the Economic Development Unit of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), Nodar Kereselidze, Improving Rural Development in Georgia Project Manager and Vakhtang Kontselidze, Project Coordinator, were also present to familiarize themselves with the working process at the garment manufacture.